Mutations

Here's why one SARS-CoV-2 variant still reigns supreme : Shots - Health News : NPR

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Has the evolution of the virus finally started to ebb, possibly making it more predictable?

The answer — according to a dozen evolutionary biologists, virologists and immunologists interviewed by NPR — is no.

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Among Seniors, a Declining Interest in Boosters - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

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Although Americans over 65 remain the demographic most likely to have received the original series of vaccinations, at 92 percent, their interest in keeping their vaccinations up-to-date is steadily declining, data from the C.D.C. shows. To date, about 71 percent have received the first recommended booster, but only about 44 percent have received the second.

Younger people have also been less likely to receive boosters than the original vaccinations, and only about one-third of people of all ages have received any booster, The New York Times vaccine tracker indicates. But seniors, who constitute 16 percent of the population, are more vulnerable to the virus’s effects, accounting for three-quarters of the nation’s 1.1 million deaths.

“From the beginning, older people have felt the virus was more of a threat to their safety and health and have been among the earliest adopters of the vaccine and the first round of boosters,” said Mollyann Brodie, the executive director of public opinion at Kaiser Family Foundation, which has been tracking vaccination rates and attitudes.

Uganda applies well-honed lessons to new Ebola outbreak (nbcnews.com)

...the East African country — lauded for its coronavirus response, which was built around engaging the community and training health officials — is drawing lessons from the first Ebola outbreak in 2004.

ALSO SEE: Uganda reports worrisome increase in Ebola cases in capital

The main COVID symptoms have changed, research shows | The Hill

 ... like all viruses, the primary symptoms associated with COVID have changed and can vary based on your vaccination status, according to a new list released last week.

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Researchers have found that for participants in all three groups — fully vaccinated, those who received just one dose, and unvaccinated — four of the five most commonly reported symptoms are the same: sore throat, runny nose, persistent cough, and headache.

Their prevalences across the groups, however, vary, as does the fifth symptom.

For those who are vaccinated, a blocked nose is the third-most frequently reported symptom. Among the partially vaccinated, it’s sneezing, and the unvaccinated, fever.

Below are the symptoms most commonly reported among the three groups, ranked in order of how often they are reported.  ...